He noted the suspect, whom he did not identify, had an active felony warrant for eluding, "and there was a belief that there were more potential victims or people in the house who were threatened," he said.

At about 3:15 p.m., a SWAT team and deputies approached the home, located in the 18700 block of South Smythe Road, and attempted to break down the door. They immediately were met with gunfire, Nowels said. An additional victim was located on the floor of the home after three deputies returned gunfire.

"Two of the deputies sustained life-threatening wounds and were transported to Sacred Heart, where they are currently still there undergoing treatment," Nowels said. "Both of our deputies are fighting for their lives. Both have very young families."

One deputy was taken to Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center via patrol car, and the other was flown by a Life Flight helicopter.

"I'm almost speechless," Nowels said. "I will say, so far we've been able to determine that it appears the suspect is deceased as well as that person inside the home."

The Spokane Police Department has taken over the investigation into the incident, and Washington State Patrol is investigating the deputies' use of deadly force.

Spokane County Prosecutor Preston McCollam, who was running to retain his seat on Tuesday, posted on Facebook that he was canceling his election party in light of the incident.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the brave deputies who responded to the call tonight," McCollam wrote. "... Please pray for our deputies and their families as they start surgery and continue to look for the bad-guy that wreaked this havoc. God bless our brave men and women in law enforcement."

After reports went out that the deputies had been shot, law enforcement from as far as Kootenai County responded with scores of patrol cars, trucks and SWAT vehicles. Law enforcement and state crews initially closed down eastbound Interstate 90 and a good portion of U.S. Highway 195 to open a corridor for the massive law enforcement response.

Earlier reports on how many people were injured fluctuated.

Adam Richards, chief nursing officer at Sacred Heart, did not elaborate on details surrounding the incident during a news conference Tuesday evening, but said the staff cares "deeply about everybody who comes through the door."

"When it's a first responder, it's especially touching," Richards said. "It's one of us."

More than two dozen law enforcement vehicles lined Eighth Avenue in front of Sacred Heart's emergency room, including Spokane police officers, Spokane County Sheriff's Office deputies, Spokane Valley police and Spokane Transit Authority police.

Some sheriff's deputies changed into honor guard clothing and walked inside the emergency wing of the hospital. Chaplains were observed walking inside. Some deputies were crying.

Dozens of law enforcement officers sped downtown and later toward Spangle around 3:19 p.m. A Life Flight helicopter landed at Sacred Heart shortly before 4 p.m.

Both directions of U.S. Highway 195 were closed for hours due to police activity, from Stutler to Smythe roads. They finally opened just before Nowels' news conference.

Nowels did not name the deputies, and asked for privacy as their families dealt with their situations. He did say one was a member of the SWAT Team and another was a K-9 deputy, who recently had been a member of SWAT.

Details of how they were shot were not provided.

"I will tell you that a lot of questions that I have about the why, what caused this, why did this person do this — we don't have answers to, and that's what the investigation is going to do," Nowels said. "I apologize I don't have answers for that. I will say there is no outstanding threat to the public right now."

He noted that the scene is secure, but complete answers about the deadly shooting could take days.

"The scene is secure and there will be law enforcement presence out there for quite a bit of time," he said. "Both of our deputies are fine men. They are young members of our SWAT team who show up every day and are trained to put themselves in harm's way. And, they were seriously injured today going in to try to save people."

"This is not the outcome any of us wanted to see," Nowels said.

Line-of-duty deaths are infrequent in the Spokane area, but there have been incidents where first responders were wounded or killed in recent years.

• Stevens County Sheriff's Office Detective Travis Felder was shot twice in the upper chest on April 28 while responding to a burglary call in the 16400 block of North Suncrest Drive in Suncrest. He recovered from his injuries.
• The most recent line-of-duty death in Spokane County was Spokane County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Kenneth Salas, who was struck and killed by a motorist on Interstate 90 near the Four Lakes exit on Aug. 9, 2025, while attempting to remove debris from the freeway.
• Coeur d'Alene Fire Department Battalion Chief John Morrison and Kootenai County Fire and Rescue Battalion Chief Frank Harwood were killed in an ambush on Canfield Mountain on June 29, 2025. Coeur d'Alene Fire Department firefighter Dave Tysdale was shot and severely injured, but survived.
• One June 26, 2022, two Spokane police officers responding to a drive-by shooting were ambushed. Officer Kris Honaker was shot in the leg and had a bullet graze his scalp. He recovered from his injuries.
• An undercover ATF agent was wounded in a shooting at the Motel 6 off Sunset Highway on Nov. 5, 2021. The agent, who was not publicly identified, was quickly released from the hospital.
• Kalispell Tribal Police Officer Jaymes R. Hughes had a fatal heart attack while responding to a call at the Northern Quest Resort and Casino in Airway Heights on Jan. 6, 2021. He had previously served with the Spokane County Sheriff's Office for 40 years.
• The most recent law enforcement shooting death in the area was Coeur d'Alene Police Department Sgt. Greg Moore, who was shot and killed in the early morning hours of May 5, 2015, after stopping to talk to someone in connection with burglaries in the area. He was the first Coeur d'Alene officer to be shot and killed in the line of duty.
• Two Spokane County deputies, Matt Spink and Mike Northway, were shot and wounded on June 19, 2012, in north Spokane after pulling over an SUV. The suspect fled. After a chase, the suspect shot and killed himself.
• Spokane County has not had a shooting death of a law enforcement officer since July 20, 1983, when Spokane Police Department Detective Brian Frederick Orchards was shot and killed on a stake out while observing thieves suspected of taking a valuable gun collection.

Reporter Elena Perry contributed to this report.

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